Put Some Respect On Their Names: These Are The Most Controversial Rapper Interviews Ever!

When it comes to political correctness, most rappers are not. They almost never shy away from expressing their unfiltered opinions, and this often makes for great music.

Some rappers even keep that same no-nonsense attitude when it comes to dealing with the media. And while that may result in an awkward interaction with the interviewer, it leaves the rest of us with memes and other entertaining clips.

From Birdman checking the hosts of The Breakfast Club to the fight that almost went down at the 2017 BET Awards – let’s take a look back at some of the most provocative and controversial rapper interviews that have etched themselves into pop culture.

In 2016, Birdman stopped by Power 106’s The Breakfast Club for what many thought would be a routine press interview. However, things immediately went left.

“I want to start this s--t off straight, all three of y'all stop playing with my name,” the rapper said as he walked into the studio. The “Still Fly” MC let off a few more expletives before exclaiming, “When my name come up, respect it.”

DJ Envy, Charlamagne tha God, and Angela Yee were visibly stunned during Birdman’s rant, but they attempted to continue the interview. Birdman never explicitly explained what triggered his frustration but Charlamagne did not back down.

“Don’t get tough with the radio guy,” he said. This remark seemed to further enrage Birdman, who quickly stormed out of the interview – which lasted only two minutes.

This one is a little less controversial but even more entertaining. Soulja Boy stopped by The Breakfast Club in 2019 for an interview that birthed countless memes.

It was the “Crank That” rapper's first time on the syndicated radio program, but he did not hold back.

Soulja took shots at B2K and Kanye West, but the biggest moment came after Charlamagne said Drake was the biggest rapper in the world. Soulja questioned: “Drake?” The moment is now a part of pop culture forever.

Kanye's appearance on Drink Champs was so controversial that the episode was pulled offline by host N.O.R.E.

The interview first aired in October 2022, when the rapper was being criticized for making antisemitic comments. While some thought Ye would take the opportunity to apologize to the Jewish community on the podcast, he instead chose to double down on his beliefs.

He suggested that Jewish people ran Hollywood and were trying to silence him as he continued speaking out. Ye never walked back the comments he made, but N.O.R.E. has apologized for giving the rapper a platform.

A fight almost broke out at the 2017 BET Awards between Joe Budden and the members of Migos.

The group was attending the award ceremony’s pre-show when they sat down with Joe and DJ Akademiks to discuss their rise to fame. However, things turned sour when Akademiks asked Takeoff why he was not included on the group’s hit single, “Bad and Boujee.”

“You said I’m left off ‘Bad and Boujee?’ Does it look like I’m left off ‘Bad and Boujee?” Takeoff fired back.

Joe then interjected, saying, “Alright, we gotta wrap this up though.” But Quavo took that as a jab, responding, “Well, wrap it up then.” This caused Joe to angrily leave the stage. The Migos then squared up asking the rapper: “What you trying to do?”